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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: mate · clip · rule · squash · march · staff · ground · track

  1. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. ground — a position
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. rule — a law
  6. clip — for paper
  7. march — music
  8. ground — the earth
  9. mate — a partner
  10. squash — the sport
  11. march — the month
  12. track — a path
  13. track — a song
  14. staff — employees
  15. clip — a video
  16. staff — employees
  17. march — the month
  18. clip — to cut
  19. squash — to crush
  20. staff — a stick
  21. mate — a friend
  22. mate — to breed
  23. ground — crushed
  24. rule — government

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com